Working With a Zillow Partner Agent in Your Home-Buying Journey

For most people, buying a home is the biggest financial investment they’ll make and it’s a process that often feels both complicated and deeply personal. That’s why most buyers (nearly 9 in 10) choose to work with a real estate agent. A great agent works only for you — representing you and you only — and is your personal advocate, focused on your financial and housing goals, your budget and your peace of mind. From negotiating your first offer to navigating inspection and appraisal, an agent who is there to help you make confident and informed decisions every step of the way.

On Zillow, when you reach out to “Contact Agent” or "Request a Tour” you’re matched with a Zillow agent partner, who is a local buyer’s agent. A buyer’s agent is there to represent you and your interests. They’re a local expert in your market and will be a trusted resource for you throughout the entire transaction. Their role will be to partner with you in your home search, guiding you through offer strategy, negotiate the best deal on your behalf and serve as a resource through financing and closing. Zillow makes it clear who you’re connecting with so you know right away who’s on your side. 

It’s important to understand the difference between a buyer’s agent and a seller’s agent. Seller’s agents — also known as listing agents — are licensed real estate professionals who represent the homeowner (seller) in the sale of their property. They represent the seller’s best interests. A seller’s agent helps homeowners determine the appropriate listing price, market their home, and manage the offer and sale process of the home. The listing agent might know more about that particular property but their obligation is to serve the needs of the seller first. A buyer’s agent will work to understand the buyer’s needs and is obligated to serve the buyer first in a real estate transaction. Think of it this way: if you were going to court, you would want your own legal representation versus working with the other side’s attorney. The same logic applies to a real estate transaction. That’s why we highlight buyer’s agents to home shoppers on Zillow. You can always find information for the listing agent on a listing on Zillow sites, but the agents we connect you with for a tour will be buyer’s agents because we believe that’s what’s best for buyers.

How agent partners work with Zillow

Zillow partner agents are independent, local real estate pros — not Zillow employees — who choose to work with us to meet potential clients, earn buyer trust and help home shoppers like you. After you request to be connected to an agent and Zillow facilitates your introduction, you decide whether to move forward with that agent. Connecting with an agent on Zillow doesn’t obligate you to work with them. You can choose to work with another agent if the first one you meet isn’t the right fit for your style or needs. Additionally, Zillow tracks and monitors the service agents provide to their buyers to ensure buyers working with a Zillow partner agent are having a great experience throughout their real estate transaction. 

Agents who partner with Zillow can work with us in two different ways: pre-pay advertising or success fee-based programs. These arrangements are simply how we structure the agreements between Zillow and some of the agents we work with. 

• Pre-pay advertising: In this model, agents spend money upfront to get in front of buyers on Zillow and earn their trust and business
• Success-fee based programs: In this program, agents pay Zillow a success fee only after the buyer they connect with on Zillow successfully buys a home. This means agents don't pay any upfront fees to connect with buyers through Zillow—they pay only if they earn your business and help you close on a home. This is an example of a typical business-to-business referral arrangement in the real estate industry.

This lets agents focus on their service to their clients and helping them find a home.  Buyers never pay Zillow to work with an agent; any commission is discussed between you and your agent or brokerage, and it’s always negotiable.

How the process works for buyers

After you ask to tour a home or click “Contact Agent,” Zillow quickly follows up to connect you with a local buyer’s agent to help facilitate and take you on that tour or discuss your real estate needs. You’ll get:

• A confirmation of the agent you’ve been connected with 
• Touring tools and reminders
• Periodic check-ins to help you stay on track

Zillow designs products and services for consumers and we work with trusted local real estate professionals as a critical part of delivering the guidance and service buyers need from start to close. Our entire experience is designed to keep you informed, supported and in control from your first home search to closing day. 

Accountability you can count on

Agents in Zillow’s success-based program are held to high standards for customer service and results. To stay in the program and continue to be connected with buyers on Zillow, they must consistently deliver great experiences from shopping all the way to closing. If they don’t, they risk losing the ability to receive buyer referrals from Zillow. Since these agents only pay Zillow for connections to buyers if they successfully help a buyer close, they’re motivated to provide excellent service from day one.

All Zillow partner agents have a Zillow profile, where you can read reviews and learn more about an agent, to help determine if the agent is a fit for your needs.

Financing choice and affordability tools

Zillow’s BuyAbility gives you a live estimate of your home buying budget based on your income, credit score, down payment, monthly debts and today’s mortgage rates from Zillow Home Loans. It’s a great first step in your home search journey to help you shop smarter. As you browse Zillow, listings are labeled to show whether they’re within your BuyAbility, and you can view the estimated monthly payment right on the home detail page — no spreadsheets required. Once you get a little more serious in your search, you can also explore mortgage pre-approval with Zillow Home Loans with no obligation and no credit score impact. The Zillow Home Loans pre-approval process is simple and guides you step-by-step, allowing you to securely upload and verify income and asset documents digitally. Zillow products and tools are designed to help you shop more confidently and you’re always free to choose any lender you like for both pre-approval and your final loan.

A more connected, faster closing

In some markets, you have the option to do everything from browsing homes to touring, financing, and closing with Zillow and our partners. This coordination helps you move forward with more clarity and confidence in what can often feel like a complicated process because everyone supporting you in your transaction is working together as a team.

In these markets, buyers who finance with Zillow Home Loans and work with a Zillow partner agent have seen their offer-to-close timeline shorten by an average of four days compared to those who used another lender — and they’re nearly twice as likely to close successfully. 

Financing and closing are often the most complex and stressful steps in buying a home. While financing is how you fund the purchase of your home, closing is the final step in buying a home. It’s when all the paperwork is signed, the money is transferred, and the ownership officially changes hands. In financing and closing, you might juggle multiple systems, emails, and document requests, wondering where things stand. When you finance and close with Zillow,  it simplifies this step with a secure online dashboard where you can track your tasks and progress from contract to close all in one place. It’s designed to reduce uncertainty and give you real-time visibility into what’s next.

The bottom line

Buying a home is a journey, and the right agent can make all the difference. We see Zillow’s role go beyond searching for and finding ‘the one’ to helping make that connection easier, clearer and more empowering — helping you find a trusted local expert who represents your best interests to guide you confidently from your first tour to the day you get your keys.